- A federal appeals panel questioned arguments to overturn Sam Bankman-Fried‘s conviction.
- His attorney claimed limits on discussing legal advice during the trial affected the verdict.
- The defense argued jurors were misled about FTX customers’ losses being repaid.
- Judges expressed doubt about these claims and dismissed repayment as a valid defense for financial crimes.
- The court will announce its decision on the appeal at a later date.
A federal appeals panel heard arguments Tuesday regarding the attempt to overturn Sam Bankman-Fried‘s conviction linked to the collapse of FTX. The hearing took place in lower Manhattan and focused on whether the former crypto executive’s 25-year prison sentence should be reversed.
Bankman-Fried was sentenced last year for seven counts, including fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy. The jury reached a verdict in under five hours. His new attorney, Alexandra Shapiro, highlighted two main points in the appeal: limitations on discussing legal advice during the trial and claims that jurors were misinformed about FTX’s customer losses.
The judges—Barrington Parker, Eunice Lee, and Maria Araujo Kahn—expressed skepticism about the defense arguments. Judge Parker noted that during the trial, Bankman-Fried testified he did not rely on lawyers’ advice when moving billions of dollars from FTX to Alameda Research, the exchange’s trading firm.
“That’s not fair,” Shapiro responded, according to a report from Inner City Press. Judge Parker questioned whether testimony about legal advice would have led to acquittals, asking, “Are you seriously suggesting to us that if your client had been able to testify about the role that attorneys played in preparing these various documents, the not-guilty verdicts would have rolled in?”, as reported by AP.
Shapiro then argued jurors were wrongly told at trial that customers lost billions, when in her view those losses could have been repaid if the exchange had more time. This stance aligns with a recent post from Bankman-Fried‘s official social media account claiming FTX was not insolvent. The judges rejected this, noting that eventual repayment to victims does not legally excuse financial crimes, as cited by Inner City Press.
The appeals panel will issue its final ruling on Bankman-Fried‘s appeal at a future date.
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